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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: shower · pitcher · cue · plane · chest · band · press · rash

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. press — a publisher
  3. press — newspapers
  4. chest — of your body
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. plane — a tool
  9. chest — of your body
  10. cue — a signal
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. shower — rain
  13. cue — for pool
  14. cue — a hint
  15. press — to push
  16. shower — to wash
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. rash — hasty
  20. band — a music group
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. chest — a box
  23. band — a ring
  24. rash — a series

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com